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Review: 'Turandot' leaves some riddles unanswered

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Adam Laurence Herskowitz, tenor

Two of the greatest hits in opera come from Puccini's last masterpiece, "Turandot." Even if you don't listen to the Met on the radio every Saturday, you've almost certainly heard "Nessun dorma ," if only in an elevator, and the other is Turandot's thrilling "In questa reggia," which Maria Callas and every other diva has tried to make her own since 1926.

The Minnesota Opera production that opened Saturday at the Ordway Center in St. Paul swung and missed on both counts. Russian soprano Irina Rindzuner , who's a regular at the Met and has made Puccini's princess her signature role, hit all the right notes but was far too frosty and passionless on opening night. She marched quickly and quirkily through "In questa reggia" and left barely a trace, even in the meltingly beautiful final measures.

Tenor Adam Laurence Herskowitz , for his part, seemed disengaged and out of place as Calaf, her would-be lover. Like Rindzuner, he has Met credits on his impressive resume, but he's more a Wagnerian heldentenor than an aspiring Pavarotti. He sang with force and clarity but with little warmth or conviction; in "Nessun dorma," it was almost shocking how he failed to sustain the phrases and take full advantage.

Kelly Kaduce was magnificent, however, as Liu, the slave who guides Calaf's blind father and gives her life for the younger man's happiness. The Minnesota-born soprano, who was Cio-Cio San in "Madama Butterfly" last year, was electrifying in "Signore, ascolta!," where she confesses her love for Calaf, and her performance in the gruesome final act was heartrending. Aside from her lustrous voice, Kaduce has a charisma on stage that the others couldn't match.

Along with the usual comic relief provided by Ping, Pong and Pang (especially by Matthew Opitz as Ping) and the extravagant stagecraft and costumes by designer Andre Barbe , Kaduce is reason enough to make the trip to the Ordway.

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The production, directed by Renaud Doucet, runs through Sunday and wraps up the company's 50th anniversary season, which included a world premiere (Douglas Cuomo's "Doubt") and a company premiere, a magnificent production of "Hamlet" last month.

"Turandot" was Puccini's last work, and as history turned out, it marked the end of the road for 400 years of Italian opera in the grand tradition. The composer died before he could finish the finale, it was given to a much lesser talent to complete, and this production inadvertently makes clear how thin that material really is. Others have tried to improve on the final duet, but Puccini himself knew there were dramatic issues that weren't easily resolved; he procrastinated until throat cancer resolved the issues for him.

Nonetheless, the opera has enough glamour and grandiosity to at least hint at the glories of Verdi's day, and the score pushes far beyond Puccini's more lyrical scores. It's dark, full of dissonance and disturbing tonalities and meters, with hints of traditional Chinese melodies and exotic instrumental color, including of course the fatal gong. Michael Christie , who's wrapping up his first season as music director, led the orchestra with assurance and generally fine balance with the soloists and chorus. At times, the orchestra seemed too deferential to the action, but many singers were far upstaged and couldn't be heard easily, including the emperor, sung by one of the Twin Cities' classical music heroes, Vern Sutton.

The performances tonight, Friday and Sunday will feature Helen Todd, who's sung Mozart's Queen of the Night with the Minnesota company, as Turandot; spinto tenor Scott Piper as Calaf; and resident artist Christie Hageman as Liu.

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Michael Christie, musical director-conductor

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